On Friday 31st March, Rob Wilson MP will be hosting his and Reading's first Disability Confident: Access To Work Job Fair at the pentahotel, Reading.
Aimed specifically at jobseekers with disabilities, the Access to Work Job Fair will be offering real employment opportunities on the day itself, alongside the chance for employers to explore the benefits to their businesses of hiring disabled people and supporting them into employment.
As with Rob's 10 Reading Job Fairs, the event will be held free of charge to both jobseekers and employers, thanks to the sponsorship of partner organisation, Elevate Reading.
The landmark event will be divided into two parts:
First, from 9 to 9:45am, businesses and organisation exhibiting real jobs on the day will attend a 'Talks for Employers’ session, with first-hand accounts of disabled job seekers have been supported into employment and how the organisation has benefitted as a result.
10am to 1pm: the Access to Work Job Fair will be open to the public. Job seekers with disabilities will be able to visit prospective employers and browse a wide range of employment and training opportunities, catering for a range of ages, skills and career paths.
Disability Confident is a Government campaign, launched in 2013 to challenge negative attitudes to disability and target employers to make them aware of the business benefits of employing disabled people.
Rob's Access to Work Job Fair builds on last year's successful Disability Confident Conference, which sought to bust some of the myths around disabled people in the work place and help unlock what is often a pool of untapped potential for employers.
Rob said, “Last year, I hosted a successful Disability Confident event which brought employers together to demonstrate the benefits to organisations of hiring employees with disabilities. This inspired me to organise my own Disability Confident Job fair with real employment opportunities available for job seekers with disabilities in my constituency.
“My aim is build a shared society in Reading, where the local economy works for everyone. Equal access to employment opportunities is crucial to achieving this ambition and I want disabled people to be able to aspire to long, enjoyable and rewarding careers. Disability should not be an impediment to success or opportunity and my Access to Work Job Fair looks to break down barriers, demonstrate to employers the value added of hiring disabled employees and hopefully get lots of this hiring done on the day!
“I also know that for businesses looking to expand their workforce, finding the right employees can sometimes be a challenge. There’s plenty of potential out there just waiting to be unlocked, especially amongst those jobseekers with disabilities. I want to make sure that businesses and organisations are Disability Confident to ensure they can accommodate everyone in their business.
“I’d encourage anybody with a disability looking for a new career, training or employment advice to come along to the Access to Work Job Fair on Friday 31st March to discover new job prospects.Any business or organisation interested in exhibiting at the event should contact my office on 0118 375 9785.”